[em style="outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 12px; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; padding: 0px; margin: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Data on acute care hospital discharges from the hospital’s most recently filed 12-month cost report at the time of the calculation will be used as the basis for making preliminary incentive payments. Final payments will be determined at the time of settling the first 12-month cost report for the hospital FY that begins after the beginning of the payment year and settled on the basis of the hospital discharge data from that cost reporting period. For example, for an eligible hospital with a cost reporting period running from July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2011, CMS would employ the relevant data from the hospital’s most recently filed 12-month cost report at the time of the calculation (most likely the June 30, 2010 cost report) to determine the preliminary incentive payment for the hospital during FY 2011. However, the final incentive payment would probably be based on hospital discharge data from the cost report beginning July 1, 2011 (fiscal year ending June 30, 2012) and determined at the time of settlement for that cost reporting period. If that cost report is not filed for a 12-month period, the next full 12-month cost report would be employed.[/em]

What is meant by the preliminary and final incentive payments? If a hospital attests in July 2012 for the previous 90 days, I'm assuming based on above, the preliminary payment would be based on the cost report from the previous fiscal year, in this case from FY11. What is the settlement referenced above? I was under the impression that hospitals receive first year's payment in one lump sum and second in one lump sum and so forth. Is it not a single payment 30-45 days from attestation?

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